This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
Many modern automotive vehicles include one or more airbags that inflate to protect an occupant of the vehicle during a crash or impact event. The airbag system may include a propulsion device or inflator that rapidly releases high-pressure gas or other fluid into the airbag to nearly instantaneously inflate the airbag in response to a sensed impact event.
Such inflators are often manufactured at a facility that is remote from a facility in which the airbag system or the vehicle are assembled. Therefore, the inflators are often shipped in bulk via truck, airplane, train, and/or boat to the facility in which the inflators will be integrated into vehicles and/or airbag assemblies. Before and/or after being shipped, the inflators may also be stored in inventory at a plant or warehouse, for example, before they are installed into airbag assemblies.
The present disclosure provides a packaging apparatus and method for packaging one or more inflators for shipment and/or storage.